Father Kevin A. Codd

Origin Stories: Corpus Christi, June 11, 2023

The "origin story" of today's solemn feast of The Body and Blood of Christ, more commonly known as "Corpus Christi" is really that of the Jesus' Jerusalem Passover meal on the night before he died. His gift of his body and blood was not given only to edify the recipients, but came with a responsibility to share the gift beyond the person receiving it. Jesus' self-giving love, manifested in healing, forgiving, compassion for the sinner is always a gift to be given. If we focus today only on our own spiritual nourishment and not our responsibility to do what Jesus did "in memory of him" then his memory is lost, and in a sense, he dies. This feast of Jesus' Body and Blood calls us to give our own body and blood to the world beyond the doors of this or any church.

Grief: That Most Unwelcome Intruder, Third Sunday of Easter, April 24, 2023

Grief is a most unwanted intruder into our lives. It sneaks up on us from behind and wraps its dull claws around our chest, squeezing out of us words, hope, and joy. Jesus' disciples have been living with this intruder into their lives for three days now. It keeps them from seeing and knowing who it is who walks with them in their intense sadness, until...

Homily given to the Saint Francis Catholic Community in Cuenca, Ecuador, Iglesia San Francisco.

Doubts: Second Sunday of Easter (A), April 16, 2023

Most of us have found that a part of our life of faith is the entertaining of doubts about that faith. Happily, we find a "patron saint of doubt" in today's Easter Gospel from John. That "patron saint," of course, is the apostle Thomas. He leads the way and accompanies us as we move from doubt to deeper faith. 

This homily was preached before the Saint Francis Catholic Community of Cuenca in the Iglesia de San Francisco, Cuenca, Ecuador. 

Mary Magdalene’s Very Weird Morning: Easter Morning (A), April9, 2023

Mary Magdalene's very bad week is about to take a very weird turn as she heads to the tomb early on the first day of the week.

This Easter lmorning homily was preached to the Saint Francis Catholic Community of Cuenca in the Iglesia San Francisco, Cuenca, Ecuador. 

Good Friday: Pride and the Cross, April 7, 2023

One startling and distressing detail of John's Passion story is the profession of fidelity of the Chief Priests to Caesar: "We have no king but Caesar!" This is a kind of blasphemy and idolatry for it was no secret that Caesar pretended at divinity. How did those Chief priests get to such a place, these holiest of holy men? That is a profound question that reaches back to the sin of Adam and all of us ever since: taking God's gifts and claiming them as our own. Pride. The Cross we venerate on this night stands as a potent counter to that Pride. It is all humility and self-giving sacrifice. In its veneration we are called to mercy, compassion, and loving self-sacrifice. 

This homily was shared with the Saint Francis Catholic Community in Cuenca at the Iglesia de San Francisco. (Sadly, the audio of the prior proclamation of the Passion was not adequate so had to be deleted.)

”And Jesus Wept”, 5th Sunday of Lent (A), March 26, 2023

Of the many important details that make the story of the raising of Lazarus so powerful, perhaps the one most likely to be overlooked is the simple, three-word sentence: "And Jesus wept." That Jesus would weep as we weep, especially in the face of the death of a beloved friend, reminds us of Jesus' humanity. His tears mingle with ours and ours with his. His trembling before the cold, dark tomb of his friend reminds us of his cosmic battle, his divine battle really, with the forces of death, destruction, and evil itself...a trembling which is expressed in the God-command: "Lazarus, come out!"

Homily delivered to the Saint Francis Catholic Community of Cuenca, Ecuador. Iglesia de San Francisco, Cuenca

I Was Blind, But Now I See, 4th Sunday of Lent (A), March 19, 2023

The Man Born Blind (too bad we never get a name!) in today's Gospel from John shows forth incredible metal and character as he grows through adversity upon adversity. At first, his healer is just "than man Jesus", then he is a prophet, and finally he worships Jesus, the Son of Man. He stands before us this Lenten season as a great model of what it means to open our eyes to the Lord's presence with us every day of our life. 

Homily delivered to the Saint Francis Catholic Community of Cuenca, Ecuador, (Iglesia de San Francisco).

”May I Have a Drink of Water?” Third Sunday of Lent (A), March 12, 2023

Jesus' encounter at the Well of Jacob with the Samaritan woman is a great story! It merits unpacking. We move from Jesus alone, tired, thirsty, to an entire village of Samaritans acclaiming him "the Savior of the World!" In between is a story filled with twists and turns, unexpected revelations, and even some light humor. And it all begins with a simple request: "May I have a drink of water?"

Homily delivered to the Saint Francis Catholic Community in Cuenca, Iglesia de San Francisco, Cuenca, EC. (Based on a homily from 2017).

Listen to Him! Second Sunday of Lent (A), March 5, 2023

One constant in the Gospels is the command Jesus' Father in Heaven gives to his followers: "This is my beloved Son; LISTEN TO HIM!" Like Peter, we have a hard time listening to Jesus; wrapping our head and our heart around his Way of salvation is not easy, but especially in this Lenten season, "listening to Jesus" in the coming Gospel stories leading us to Holy Week, is precisely what we are called to intensely do. 

Homily delivered to the Saint Francis Catholic Community in Cuenca, Ecuador, (Iglesia de San Francisco).

From Hubris to Humility, First Sunday of Lent (A), Feb 26, 2023

Temptation, Sin, and Evil: as Lent begins, we are forced by today's scripture readings to confront the reality of human evil that has plagued us since the beginning. The stories of our first parents and their great sin of hubris to that of Jesus in the desert and the extraordinary humility he demonstrates in the face of temptation, give us our "Lenten Program". 

Homily delivered to the Saint Francis Catholic Community in Cuenca, Iglesia de San Francisco.